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Apple’s iMac Leads All-in-One PC Market

In the computer world, portable devices get the most attention and sales without a doubt. However, despite that, all-in-one PCs have quietly become an overwhelming and booming market and Apple’s iMac accounts for almost one-third of all of the all-in-one PCs sold in the industry.
All-in-one desktop...

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Apple debuted its newest operating system, OS X 10.11 El Capitan, at the Worldwide Developers Conference back in June. This new operating system builds on the features and design changes that were introduced with OS X Yosemite and while El Capitan may seem like an odd name, it is meant to highlight the operating system’s position as an update that brings under-the-hood improvements and refinements to OS X Yosemite.

In terms of reality, El Capitan is one of the most popular rock formations and landmarks located within the Yosemite National Park. The El Capitan name for OS X 10.11 hearkens back to a long-running OS X naming scheme that is used to denote updates that are refinements to previous updates. Other similar name changes include Leopard to Snow Leopard and Lion to Mountain Lion.

El Capitan shows that Apple is focusing on two major areas: the user experience and performance. Improvements to things like apps, window management, and Spotlight search enhance the way people use their Macs. In addition to that, the under-the-hood additions, like Metal graphics technology, make everyday activities like launching apps much faster.

El Capitan doesn’t change up its aesthetic too much, keeping the same general look as Yosemite. However, it does include a new system-wide font known as San Francisco. OS X’s window management feature, Mission Control, has also been given an upgrade and introduces a Split View feature that mimics the iOS 9 multitasking feature on the iPad. This features also allows for two full-screen apps to be used simultaneously side-by-side.

Spotlight search will now support natural language input with El Capitan as well as gaining deeper functionality and more sources. Safari has also gained Pinned Sites, which will allow users to pin favorite websites on the tab bar. There’s also a nifty new mute button that will mute all sound coming from Safari or quickly identify specific tabs playing audio.

Mail also supports new iOS-style gestures for managing messages while a Smart Suggestions addition will recognize names and events for quick additions to contacts and calendars. Moreover, whenever you are in full screen, there will also be tools that deal with multiple emails one at a time.

Another thing that is gaining support with El Capitan is Photos. Photos will now support third-party photo editing extensions from Mac App Store apps. The Notes app is also being revamped, much like the Notes app for iOS 9 was. This new app will support checklists, content from other apps like Safari or Maps, and an Attachment Browser.

In terms of performance, the addition of Metal improves speeds for the Mac by increasing system-level graphics rendering. This graphics improvement, along with other enhancements, allows many standard apps to perform better and also allows games and pro apps to see significant performance boosts as well.

OS X 10.11 El Capitan was given to developers back in June right after the Worldwide Developers Conference. On July 9, Apple began offering OS X El Capitan to public beta testers. Since then, Apple has given out eight El Capitan betas to developers along with six betas to public beta testers with each one adding small tweaks and improvements to the operating system. The operating system is supposed to be available to consumers sometime this Fall.

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It seems like it’s been a while since we’ve seen Apple deliver us anything other than a new iPad or iPhone. Now for true Apple fans such as myself, this isn’t really too much of a problem. That being said, sometimes, it’s nicer to sit and use a big beautiful computer. Not a laptop. An actual desktop computer. It’s been so long since I’ve actually operated one, and I won’t lie; I miss it sometimes. Apple has continuously made a name for themselves with their consumer mobile electronics, however. It seems like that’s all they’re known for anymore. Luckily for us, they’ve not forgotten those users that like to remain a bit more stationary. They gave us a new iMac, and holy crap it looks incredible.

Apple released a new iMac with a 5K display… yes, you read that right.

5 Is Better Than 4

When you take a look at the screen of the new iMac, just prepare to be blown away at the sheer beauty of it. Why is it so remarkable? Well, it’s because of the recent Apple term “Retina”. Apple use this term when it essentially doubles the pixels on a typical screen resolution. We’ve seen Retina devices from Apple for a while now. The original Retina iMac that we saw had only 2,560 x 1,440. Now that isn’t saying that the display looked bad, because it did not AT ALL. The new 5k iMac doubles those numbers though. A whopping 5,120 x 2,880 pixel count is what you’re going to see when you look at this bad boy. The screen boasts 14.7 million pixels across the entire 27-inch real estate. This makes this particular display perfect for anyone looking to do some illustrating or photo editing. After all, you’re working with 14.7 million pixels remember?

What’s Under The Hood?

While yes, the screen of this new iMac looks nothing short of phenomenal, it’s a lot more than just a pretty face. This new iMac is as powerful as it is gorgeous to look at. They made sure to match the inner workings with the outer beauty. The new 5K Retina iMac houses a 4th gen Haswell Intel Core i5 quad-core processor that runs at a cool 3.5GHz, so you know that you’re getting speed and performance. If that’s not good enough for you, you can always upgrade the processor to an Intel Core i7 quad-core processor which will run at 4GHz. The graphics card that comes with the base model is an AMD Radeon R9 290X GPU, and 2GB of RAM. Yet again, if you want a bit more graphical power, you can upgrade the graphics card too, to an AMD Radeon R9 295X with double the RAM. You’re going to want the best for this 5K screen anyway.

But… Why?

There are some out there, myself included, that might be wondering just why Apple decided to go ahead and release an iMac with a 5K resolution display. This type of technology is a bit ahead of its time, simply because it’s hard enough already to find any 4K media, let alone 5K. That isn’t to say that a new 5K monitor and computer isn’t appreciated though! Apple just simply has the resources to pull this type of technology off. The main selling point of the new iMac is clearly the 5K screen, but you’re also getting a very powerful computer to go along with it. The price tag sits right at $2,499, but if you think about what all you’re getting, it doesn’t really seem overpriced. After all, a regular 4K display costs around that price anyway. You’re looking at a better screen and getting an amazing computer for the price of a good 4K monitor.

Apple’s new Retina 5K iMac is nothing to take lightly. It shows that Apple still has the gusto to make amazing hardware that isn’t just for a mobile market. The sooner you can get a look at this new iMac, the better. It’s beyond impressive. Well played Apple, well played.

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There has been a lot of news around the internet about the newiPhone 6 and the new iPhone 6 Plus. Some of the news hasn’t been so nice to read. There a tons of people freaking out over the reports of the iPhone 6 Plus being able to bend (*See Video Below). There have even been a few people, who are apparently very rich by the way, who have even went as far as to buy a brand new iPhone 6 Plus and make YouTube videos of them bending their phone until it is completely broken.

Should this really be a concern? I don’t know, I guess it depends on the type of person you are. But before you decide on which new phone you are going to buy, you have to think rationally.

Now, I have never been a huge fan of Apple products. Not because they aren’t good, just because I think that they offer less options and flexibility than some other companies. So I’m looking at this from a fairly unbiased view point.With this launch, Apple broke every sales record they had with previous iPhones. Everyone and their mom bought one. There were literal boat loads of iPhone 6 Plus phones out there. When all of these accusations online started blowing up and becoming a big deal, there had only been 9 reported cases of the iPhone 6 Plus bending by accident. Let that sink in. That means that only a fraction of a fraction of iPhone 6 Plus users had a problem at all. I think that by itself sheds a lot of light on the whole situation.

You also have to use your own common sense, and also understand that a lot of the world doesn’t have that much common sense. You can break, bend, or destroy just about any electronic device that has ever been created. Just because I can stand on a Sony TV and destroy it doesn’t mean it isn’t a fantastic TV, and just because I can’t bounce a MacBook like a basketball and then score a goal with it before I watch cat videos on YouTube doesn’t mean it’s a bad laptop. If you try to break anything, 9 times out of 10 it’s going to work.

There may be a weak spot on the iPhone 6 Plus. There is probably a weak spot on anything. As with any nice electronic device, the iPhone 6 Plus is going to require some care. If you ask me, then in my humble opinion I don’t think anyone has anything to worry about when considering the iPhone 6 Plus. It’s a great phone, it has a longer batter life than the iPhone 6, it has a better camera and it’s obviously bigger. Go ahead and get the phone you know you want, act like you have some sense, and be happy.

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Apple’s MacBook Air laptops have become super popular due to their ultra-slim design. They are super light and easy to transport, which makes them perfect for traveling on business or for students who need to have their computer wherever they go. According to new reports from Digitimes, Apple could be launching brand new MacBook Air models that are even lighter and more slim than they have ever been before. These new models could be released as soon as the end of the year or some time in 2015.

Actually, the Digitimes report doesn’t really specify if the slimmed down new models will be the MacBook Air specifically, but that seems to be what makes the most sense. It could be a slimmed down version of the MacBook Pro, but then there wouldn’t be much of a reason for the MacBook Air. There is a strong possibility that both models will get a fresh redesign though and that they could both be slimmed down a bit. The same website has also reported that the current 13.3-inch version of the MacBook Pro will be retired by the end of the year.

Both of these flagship laptops have gotten little changes this year already. Nothing major was updated, but they did both get a CPU boost along with a nice drop in price. It seems like it might be a little bit hard for Apple to shave even more bulk off of the MacBook Air. At the same time, they will probably never slim down the MacBook pro to the same size as the MacBook Air. The two laptops are different and have different selling points, they wouldn’t dare drop one from their line of products or go out of their way to make them basically the same.

Either way, these new reports are very interesting. Hopefully we will be hearing some more news on this by the end of the year, or even see the new product in person by then.

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Rumors have been circulating recently of Apple revamping a lot of its hardware, namely with the iMac and MacBook devices. These rumors aren’t surprising due to the fact that Apple is pretty consistent in its timeframe of upgrades, so much so that you can practically set your watch by it. But one interesting bit of information that is making its rounds is the fact that Apple could be looking into boosting the processor speed of the next version of iMacs.

As far as looks go, the iMac has stayed pretty consistent since its last redesign in 2012, instead focusing on minor upgrades in processing power that have benefited the device a good deal. It is still up in the air as to when exactly Apple may do a physical redesign again to the already impressively slim all-in-one but a lot of users are keeping their fingers crossed for other enhancements, most notably a higher screen resolution thanks to a Retina display.

However, French blog site MacGeneration recently debuted a report that suggests that Apple is planning on refreshing the iMac lineup as early as next week with speed upgrades. MacGenerations talked about all four iterations of the iMac and the potential upgrades that could be coming to each one.

The $1,499 21.5″ 2.9 GHz iMac could see CPU speeds increase 0.1 GHz to 3.0 while the Turbo Boost feature, which manages individual cores of the processor automatically for increased efficiency in both power and performance, would increase to 3.7 GHz from 3.6. The $1,299 21.5″ 2.7 GHz iMac wouldn’t receive any upgrades at all, at least as far as MacGenerations is concerned.

The $1,799 27″ 3.2 GHz iMac would see processing speeds increase 0.1 GHz as well to 3.3 accompanied with the Turbo Speed increase from 3.6 GHz to 3.7 GHz. The final version of iMac, the $1,999 27″ 3.4 GHz model, would also see a 0.1 GHz increase to 3.5 with the Turbo Speed performance increasing from 3.8 GHz to 3.9 GHz.

However, all of these speed increases are for the basic models. For a small price increase users are already able to increase both processing speed and Turbo Boost when configuring their device. If these reports hold true then it appears as if some Apple fans will be disappointed as no Retina display has been announced for any of the iMac variations.

Rumors of Apple bringing the Retina display to the iMac have been circulating for some time now. Apple released a 5120 x 2880 wallpaper image a year ago that hinted at the Retina display was coming to the iMac as well as Apple’s external models. The MacBook Pro lineup has had Retina displays for quite awhile now, as has the iPhone and iPad, but Apple has yet to bring it to the iMac or the MacBook Air, which is frustrating potential customers.

There is one solitary clue, however, that alludes to this year being the year of the Retina iMac. Code has been discovered in the beta of Apple’s recently-announced OS X 10.10 Yosemite operating system that points to higher-resolution settings for an unknown computer that could very well be the iMac.

Unfortunately for us that is all purely speculative hearsay and nothing has been set in stone. Not everyone is in favor of the iMac getting the Retina display, however. Customers seem to be a little divided on the topic with some thinking that a Retina display on the iMac is awesome while others believe it to be a bit too much. What about you? Are you eager to see the iMac come out with a beautiful Retina display?

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It’s hard to hear the name “Apple” and then place the word next to the term “affordable”. This isn’t to bash on Apple, but as the old adage goes, “you get what you pay for”, right? Apple provides excellent products, usually all are very high-end. However, with high-end products come high-end prices. The iMac and even the Macbook aren’t considered the most affordable of tech devices, but they are always seen as some of the best tech you can get your hands on. You would think that with all of the competitors out there offering lower costs, and most succeeding at emulating what Apple can do, they would try to compete themselves and offer lower prices on some of their tech. Well thankfully, that looks to be in some of Apple’s plans this year.

Apple’s product road map for the year of 2014 has pointed out some interesting things. First and foremost in a new ultra slim 12″ Macbook Air. The map revealed more on the iWatch, and new sizes in iPhones, but more so revealed a new low cost iMac as well.

The new Macbook Air seems to be the thing that most everyone is concerned with, in terms of new laptops coming out later this year. The new Air is expects to do away with the two different sizes which its predecessor had. The new Air is rumored to be 12″ instead of offering an 11″ or 13″ model this time around. According to Ming Chi Kuo, a KGI Securities representative who is quite psychic when it comes to Apple rumors, the 12″ model is thought to be a fusion of the two previous Air models. The 12″ model will still offer the portability of the 11″ model while maintaining the efficiency and productivity of the 13″ model as well. Kuo has also predicted that the new Air model will be host to an ultra high definition display as well. It’s rumored that it will, in fact, be a retina display model to match that of the Retina Macbook Pro model. Yet another rumor of the new Macbook Air is that it will actually (somehow) be thinner and lighter than the preceding model was/is. It seems next to impossible to make this happen, but there are a few speculated specs that show how this could be possible.

As with any laptop, there are a few things that must be included within the casing to make it work. However, there is one thing that you may think would be needed in a high end laptop that the new Air will not include: a fan. This will no doubt make the laptop slimmer, but hopefully the notebook will be able to retain high power output without needing to be cooled down by a fan. There is said to also be a buttonless trackpad. The trackpad will now be responsive to pressure instead of the clicking of buttons.

Kuo again talked of the lower cost iMac expected to come out later this year. Obviously no one knows how “low-priced” it will be, but on the roadmap for Apple, it looks to come out halfway through the second quarter of 2014. The new iMac has been lowered in cost to compete with other companies that offer lower prices (funny how I mentioned that same thing at the beginning of this article). The new Macbook Air, however, isn’t expected to be out until late, possibly the end of this year.

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Whether you are crazy about Apple’s products or not I think there is one thing we can all agree on and that’s the fact that Apple’s physical stores are pretty cool. Not only are they bright, inviting and slightly futuristic looking but they also allow you to literally pick up and play with every single device that Apple currently has on the market. Plus they also allow you to bring in your Apple products for repair, allowing you to get them fixed by true Apple professionals.

So that is why it is no surprise that over a thousand people showed up to the grand opening of the very first Apple store in South America. Over 1,700 people came to the Village Mall in Rio de Janeiro’s famous Barra de Tijuca neighborhood this past weekend to check out Apple’s first physical venture in the country.

You would have thought it was Black Friday in Rio as potential customers started standing in line on Friday. Around 163 people stayed overnight for a chance to be one of the very first customers through the doors when they opened on Saturday morning.

According to the local Brazilian newspaper the Globe, Apple had anticipated as many as 1,500 people to attend the store’s grand opening with the company being more than overjoyed when that number was easily surpassed by the eager Apple junkies. Apple’s own CEO Tim Cook even took to Apple’s Twitter feed to show his appreciation for the country’s support and to those who visited, which is the first time Cook has done something like this for a store opening.

The picture (seen below) was accompanied by the text “‘Obrigado’ to everyone who visited our new store in Rio de Janeiro today and to our terrific customers across Brazil!” For those of you who don’t speak the language, “Obrigado” is Portuguese for “thank you”.

South America, with special attention on Brazil, is becoming a very important market for Apple as the company seeks to expand beyond traditional markets in the United States and Western Europe. Brazil is home to a very large population that has a fast-growing economy along with an expanding middle class.

While the out pour of support for this Apple store in Brazil is definitely a great start for Apple in the country, the company still has some hurdles to overcome. Brazil has some of the highest import taxes around, meaning Apple’s products almost twice as much as they do in the United States. Apple has, however, started manufacturing some devices in Brazil, perhaps as a way make some products more affordable for Brazilian natives.

The future for Apple in Brazil is still unclear, though if this showing of support for the first retail store in the country is any inclination then Apple could very well have stepped into a very lucrative market. The next best thing for Apple to do now is to find a way to make products cheaper, or at least comparable, for South American consumers.